Chapter 16

Strangely, Bryan had found himself somewhat enjoying the Disney/Pixar movie Sarah had dragged him to. He'd been rather skeptical of the animated movie choice, but he later realized that it wasn't a movie he and Wyatt would have chosen to go see. Sarah had known that. She'd deliberately picked something that wouldn't remind him of his movie dates with Wyatt. Sneaky girl.

They'd left the theater laughing and smiling, mimicking the silly yellow creatures with blue pants. He had to admit the boulder had lifted briefly from his chest as he'd let his mind be absorbed by the movie instead.

"Why don't we head over to the grocery store before we head back and pick up some stuff for your fridge?" Sarah suggested.

It was looking pretty sad. The milk he'd picked up last night had plopped out in chunks. It promptly disappeared down the garbage disposal, along with some old leftovers and moldy cheese. He'd been out of real coffee creamer for days and was living on his powdered emergency stash.

"Yeah, that's a good idea."

Another hour of picking out groceries, including arguing over whether he should be buying organic or not, and he was finally getting back to his house.

Sarah was helping him put things away, refrigerated items first, when a knock at the door interrupted them. Bryan's smile faltered when he opened the door to find Sgt. Woods and Officer Lettman standing there.

His breath rushed out of him as, for a second, he was sure his nightmare was coming true. But Sgt. Woods could obviously tell what he was thinking and held up his hand.

"It's okay. Nothing bad. Just have a few more questions, that's all."

Bryan realized suddenly he hadn't been breathing and sucked in air. "Oh, thank god. I thought—"

"I'm sorry, we didn't mean to scare you like that, Mr. Foxgrove," Lettman stated.

"It's okay. I've just... sort of expected..." He waved his hand at them in the doorway. "You know... you to show up like this and tell me..."

"I understand." Sgt. Woods inclined his head. "Can we come in?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah. Of course." He backed up and waved the officers into the kitchen area, offering them a seat.

"Hi," Sarah greeted with a small blushing smile.

The tall sergeant's eyes seemed to spark slightly when he noticed the redhead. "Hi, Sarah. How have you been?"

Bryan almost rolled his eyes as Sarah looked a little flustered. "I'm fine. Do either of you want something to drink?" she asked both officers.

Officer Lettman grinned at her partner as he tracked Sarah's movements to the kitchen before he responded.

"Uh, no, thanks. We're actually following up again with some of our witnesses, just to see if anything... else comes to mind," Sgt. Woods stated, casting an odd glance at his partner. "We're meeting up with the cabbie after he's done with his current fare."

"Oh, okay," Bryan nodded. "That makes sense I guess. Have you had any luck with the fingerprint yet?"

Sgt. Woods cleared his throat as Lettman glanced down as she reached for her small notebook.

"How long had you and Wyatt been together again?" Woods asked, and Bryan frowned at the man's evasiveness about the fingerprint.

"About a year."

"And you proposed on April 11th, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"You took Wyatt with you to tell your mother the next day, April 12th," the sergeant confirmed. Bryan just nodded. He'd told the man all this at the station.

"How did your mother take it?"

"Take what?"

"The news that you had proposed," Woods clarified.

"Well, she seemed surprised, like I told you before."

"But she accepted it?"

Bryan frowned at their questioning. "Yeah, she offered to hold the wedding at the manor. Said she'd talk with Wyatt about the plans, since she knew I wouldn't care."

"How did your mother feel when you first started dating Wyatt?"

"I'm not sure why this has anything to do with—"

"We're just trying to get a clear picture of everyone's relationship with each other. How did she feel about you being gay?"

"She wasn't thrilled," Bryan stated.

Sarah snorted next to him. "She hated it."

Bryan looked at her in surprise.

"Oh, come on, Bryan. You told me many times on lunch breaks how your mother was riding you, thinking it was 'just a phase'." Sarah turned to the officers. "Even now she keeps hinting that we—" she waved her finger between Bryan and herself. "— should get together. Like that's going to happen."

Sgt. Woods shared a look with his partner, who wrote furiously in her notebook. Bryan watch the exchange in confusion. "Okay, so my mom is a bit old-fashioned in her beliefs..."

"She's a bitch, Bryan. Just admit it," Sarah huffed. "You know you've wanted to strangle her a few times whenever she basically tells you to get over Wyatt and move on."

Sgt. Woods cocked his head. "How often does she mention that?"

"All the time. Until I yelled at her the other day," Sarah stated, sitting back with her arms crossed.

Bryan clenched his teeth, seething over the picture Sarah was painting of his mother in front of the officers. "I don't think she means anything. She's just trying to help."

Sarah opened her mouth to retort, but Sgt. Woods cut her off. "Did she ever try to talk you out of proposing to Wyatt Kinnon?"

Bryan opened his mouth, ready to deny it, but realized he couldn't. "Well, sort of, maybe. She kept asking me if I was sure, telling me that I shouldn't rush into a decision. But she accepted it, when I told her, pretty much anyway."

Sgt. Woods glanced at the notebook his partner was writing in. Bryan wondered what he was saying that was so interesting now, that wasn't before. "I see. Do you think she would try to talk Wyatt out of marrying you?"

"No," Bryan said without hesitation, but he found himself doubting his words immediately. "Well, I don't think she would."

"I could totally see her doing that," Sarah cut in again. "She told you that Wyatt was 'having doubts', remember. Maybe he was 'having doubts' because she badgered him."

Bryan noticed the amused look of the two officers and rolled his eyes. "Okay, yes, she could have. But I still don't see what—"

"What about your brother, what did he think about your relationship with Wyatt?"

Bryan gaped at the sergeant, shocked and confused by the abrupt turn in the conversation. "My brother? Eddie?" he stammered. "I don't know what he has—"

"Did you ever talk to him about Wyatt? Ever take Wyatt to meet him?"

Bryan blinked, glancing over at a similarly confused Sarah. "Uh, no, Eddie hasn't met Wyatt yet. He's... well, you probably already know if you're asking about him... he's mentally disabled. He's like a big kid, really."

"Do you visit him a lot?"

"Yeah, all the time. Well, not quite as much lately, with the proposal and getting Wyatt to pack and move in, but usually I do." He leaned in. "I'm not sure where you going with this, but I love my brother to death. He's everything to me."

"Does he feel the same way?" Officer Lettman asked, her head tilted slightly.

"Yeah, he does actually," Bryan snapped. "He's always been there for me. And I'm there for him. He's always asking me if I'm happy. I've talked to him several times about Wyatt, and all he care about is if Wyatt makes me happy. He doesn't care if I'm gay, straight, or whatever. Life is that simple for him. If it makes you happy, then it's okay."

"When did you last see him?"

"A couple days ago."

"At Beacon Estates?"

"Yeah, that's where he lives."

"Does he ever leave? With you, your mom, on his own?"

Bryan frowned again. "He never leaves on his own. He'd be too scared for that. They do have day trip outings that the facility arranges. And I've brought him home sometimes, especially for holidays, but mom wouldn't. She's the one who insists she can't handle him alone now. It's why he's at Beacon Estates. If my work schedule didn't take me out of town so often, I'd probably have him at my place. He's good on his own for a few hours, but not for a few days."

Another one of those looks passed. "I see. And you say Wyatt and Eddie never met?"

"No."

"Did you take the leather band that you gave to Wyatt Kinnon to show your brother at any time?"

"What?" Bryan found the question odd and out of the blue. "No, why?"

Sgt. Woods pursed his lips as he leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table. "We're wondering how his fingerprint got on the snap of the leather band."

"What?" Sarah gasped next to him. For his part, Bryan found he could only stare at the officer in shock.

"We identified the mystery fingerprint. It's your brother's."

Bryan was already shaking his head. "No. No, that's not possible. There has to be a mistake."

Sgt. Woods inclined his head. "We are having it verified again. We will be heading out to Beacon Estates to talk with the staff there and your brother shortly. We are also requesting the visitation and release logs. Are you or is Mrs. Foxgrove his guardian?"

"I am, but—"

"We'll tell you when we have the warrant. You'll need to come give permission for us to talk to him. You can bring counsel or his doctors can—"

"Counsel? A warrant? But he doesn't... there's no way he'd know anything!"

"So in your last visit with him, he didn't say anything unusual?"

Bryan chortled, "He always says something odd. He lives in his own world. He talked about mac and cheese falling out of the pantry, for goodness sakes. He said Wyatt was in time out and he was sorry."

Woods cocked his head. "He said that?"

"Yes! Because my mom was stupid enough to tell him about Wyatt's disappearance. She told Eddie that Wyatt was taking a time out and would come home saying he's sorry," Bryan huffed irritably. "I can't believe she even told him. He's so sensitive. He was really upset I was sad. He even told me that... that Wyatt loved me," he finished softly.

"Oh, Bryan," Sarah sighed, obviously sensing his pain.

"Why would your brother say that?"

"Because he knows it would make me happy. That's all Eddie cares about."

"What about making your mother happy?"

"Her too. But it's a bit different between Eddie and mom," Bryan admitted.

"How so?"

"Well, he's very needy and affectionate. Mom's... not," Bryan said, wincing slightly. "She's never really been the lovey dovey kind of mom. Dad was more understanding of Eddie's needs than she was, which is why I think she couldn't handle him on her own."

Bryan watched as the two officers looked at each other, another wordless decision was made and they nodded. "Okay, Bryan. I think we're done for now. We'll be in touch soon, possibly later tonight."

They all rose from the table, heading for the door. "I still don't understand any of this. Are you really thinking Eddie could be involved in this?"

"We have to follow up on the evidence," Sgt. Woods stated.

"But Eddie knows how much Wyatt means to me. It doesn't make any fucking sense."

"I agree," the sergeant nodded. "That's why I have to talk with Eddie."

"Fine. Fine. I guess that makes some sense."

"We'll call soon."

"Thanks, Sgt. Woods, Officer Lettman." He waved bye as he closed the door, dropping his forehead to it exhaustedly. "What the hell is going on, Sarah?"

Sarah was silent behind him, so he turned around to see her staring at him, her eyes wide with a bit of horror.

"What?" he demanded.

"Well, you did say you mom didn't really like the fact that you were dating a guy."

"So?" he snapped, more harshly than he probably should because she cringed. "What are you trying to say, Sarah?"

But she bit her lip and shook her head, apparently unwilling to voice her thoughts now. She spun quickly back to the kitchen, reaching in the fridge.

"How about I make you some eggs or something?" she threw over her shoulder with false cheerfulness.

Bryan stomped over to her, grabbed her elbow and pulling her to face him. Her green eyes were bright with worry and fear.

"You don't really think my brother did something to Wyatt like they were hinting at?" Bryan demanded. "Eddie isn't capable of hurting anyone. For fucks sake, he's been at the Home the entire time!"

Again, she chewed on her bottom lip. She sighed as she leaned against the counter. "Are you sure about that?"

"About what? That Eddie's at Beacon Estates? Yes, I'm sure! He would never leave on his own."

Sarah closed her eyes briefly. "No, but he'd leave with your mother, wouldn't he?"

Bryan faltered. "Well, yeah, but she'd never take him on her own. That's why he's there in the first place."

"I just think..." she hesitated, biting her lip again, "maybe you should call and check. I mean, you don't have to wait like the police would to access his visitation records, right?"

"This is ridiculous," he snapped, glaring at Sarah as he snapped up his phone and scrolled through his contacts to his brother's facility. Sarah watched him nervously as he waited for someone to answer.

"Beacon Estates, how can I help you?"

"Hi, this is Bryan Foxgrove, Eddie Foxgrove's brother. I'd like to talk to Dr. Neely please." Bryan knew that his brother's in-house doctor would give him the information without having to jump through red tape with the receptionist.

"Certainly, sir. I'll transfer you."

Of course, the man might not be in, so they'd probably have to wait...

"Hello? Bryan?" a familiar voice answered.

"Hi, Dr. Neely. I was just checking in on my brother. How is he doing?" He put it on speaker so Sarah could hear for herself how crazy it all was.

"He's doing well. I just had a session with him yesterday. He's a bit worried about you, it seems."

"He is?"

"Yes, he seems to believe you are sad, but that someone named Wyatt will make you happy again when he's... 'out of time out'? I was going to call you on Monday to ask you about it."

Bryan sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Yeah, I... he kinda found out about my missing fiancé, and he knows that I'm upset."

"Oh, yes, I heard about the man who'd gone missing up north a bit. I'm so sorry, I didn't realize you were the boyfriend," Dr. Neely rushed on.

"Yeah, so I was wondering if he'd had any visitors or gone out on any day trips, maybe with the facility or something lately?" he asked, pinning Sarah with his glare.

"Oh, well, let me check the logs." Bryan could hear computer keys clicking in the background. "Here it is. How far back to you want to know?"

"How about... two weeks?" Bryan asked, knowing that would more than cover the time of Wyatt's disappearance.

"Let's see. April 10th, he went on the facility outing to the zoo. Um, April 14th Mrs. Foxgrove checked him out for a home visit and he returned the morning of the 16th. Then you came on—"

"Wait, wait, wait," Bryan choked out as Sarah's hands flew to her mouth in shock, smothering her "Oh, shit."

"What did you just say? My mother took Eddie home?"

Dr. Neely seemed surprised Bryan didn't know. "Well, yes. It says she signed him out at eight am Friday morning..."

Bryan's brain struggled to process what the man was saying—Eddie was not at the facility during Wyatt's disappearance. Mom had brought him to her house the same day that she'd asked Wyatt to visit her for lunch? Why would she get Eddie? And to have picked him up at eight am, she would have had to leave at like six in the morning—why the hell would she do that? She wasn't a morning person, she hated getting up much before nine. And she's the one who thought Bryan should wait to introduce Wyatt to Eddie. Had she changed her mind and decided to introduce them? And why wouldn't she tell him about it? He'd have come by...

"A-and you say she brought him back Sunday morning?"

"Yes, well, late morning. It was about eleven," Dr. Neely added calmly.

"Oh, my God," Bryan breathed, his eyes sliding up to meet Sarah's sympathetic pools of emerald. She knew. She'd already figured out what he was just coming to realize.

His mother and Eddie may have had something to do with Wyatt's disappearance.

"Bryan? Bryan, are you okay?" Dr. Neely asked.

Bryan dragged in several heaving breaths. "Um, no, actually. But I... can I talk to Eddie, please? I'd like to ask him about his visit with my mom."

"But...he's with her now," Dr. Neely stated, sounding confused.

"Now? What do you mean 'now'?" Bryan demanded.

"She picked him up this morning, about eleven o'clock."

"Why would she do that without telling me?" Bryan asked out loud to himself.

"I don't know..."

"I'm sorry, Dr. Neely. I wasn't actually asking you, I just was talking out loud. I've...I've got to go...I need to talk to my mother... and Eddie..."

"Of course, Bryan. I hope everything is okay," the poor doctor seemed unsure.

"I hope so too."

He ended the call and slammed the phone down, raking his hands through his thick black hair. He felt tremors shaking his body. "No, this can't be right... there's got to be an explanation..."

Sarah shifted slowly in front of him. "Bryan, calm down, okay. We don't know anything for sure—"

"Really?" Bryan snapped, "Because I'm pretty sure I just got the evidence the police need to prove Eddie was in the area during Wyatt's disappearance. At my fucking mother's house! One of the places he was last seen!"

"Bryan—"

"But Eddie couldn't do this. I know he couldn't. He'd have no reason to. He even said Wyatt would—"

He cut himself off. "Oh, shit. He said 'Mama said he needed time out'. Oh, my God. Eddie knew. Something happened, Eddie saw it, and mom told him Wyatt was in time out. And Eddie believed her. He tried to tell me... But I didn't understand—"

"Bryan maybe you should—"

"Fuck!" he screamed, shooting out of the chair, grabbing his keys.

"Bryan! Where are you going?" Sarah darted after him.

"I'm going to find out what the fuck is going on, what the fuck my mother is up to, and why the hell she's using Eddie to do it!"